The Devotional - JAS007

The Devotional

Comment:

Useless faith! Harsh words for anyone who is seeking to walk by faith. I believe that the major Spiritual thought in the mind of James in this epistle is for the children of God to understand sanctifying faith. A faith that is pleasing to God under the trials and tribulations that we children of God run into daily. The apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:7 and writing also in the Spirit says, “For we walk by faith, not by sight” the subject of this section of scripture is having assurance of the Resurrection, or the assurance of our eternal state of life based on the assurance we have of Jesus Christ who is the firstfruits of being risen from the dead. The apostle Paul uses the term “we walk by faith” meaning that the effort, or the work of faith is the assurance or proof that we, being absent from this fleshly body are indeed being fully clothed; that is to be absent from this body of flesh we are assured of being present with the LORD.

Challenge: James 2:14-26

With assurance of the resurrection we ought to understand that faith in Jesus Christ begins at the moment we agree with the gospel. What is the gospel? The gospel is that Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary as God’s Son, that His plan to be obedient to the Father’s Will, led Him to His physical death on the cross at Calvary as His Father’s sacrificial offering to mankind. A sacrifice as the Lamb of God to take away the SIN of the world. And according also to this Plan and Will of His Father, be resurrected and returned to life on the third day after His death on the cross – see Luke 24:13-26 and John 1:28-34.

This message of the gospel of God is recorded over and over again throughout the Holy Bible, note that the resurrected Jesus did not use any New Testament writings (there were none). We read in Luke 24:27 – and beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded (explained) to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Faith is the gift of God to everyone who believes. The grace of God offers salvation to all who believe the gospel, thus Faith once received is not a work, but a gift.

If one choses to set the gift of faith aside, or to use it selectively, this one’s faith will be useless. He or she will watch as other children of God pass by with needs. While blessing these children in casual conversation those of selective faith will purposely ignore the needs of others. This does not mean that they fail in every area of faith, but it does mean that these children of God are using a selective faith. A system of works that ensures pleasing self and certain friends or neighbors. This faith does not please God, it pleases the devil and those who practice such faith should tremble since in the eyes with whom we have to do, sees this faith as dead or nonproductive to the glory of God.

The faith that is pleasing to God is the faith that works with God, not against God, Abraham in his mind understood that his faith was not foolish. So powerful was his understanding of faith in God that he did not hesitate to offer his son as a sacrifice to God, believing fully that if his son perished in the process that God was fully ready to raise up Isaac from the dead. By this work (assurance) Abraham’s faith was complete and not SELECTIVE. Therefore by believing God, Abraham’s faith provided or accredited to him as righteousness.

Justification and sanctification is provided, but not by the works of the flesh, but by the WORKS of FAITH. Do anything to gain God’s favor without completed trust in God and that effort will fail the glory of God. If one’s body is dead what can the spirit of the body do – NOTHING. So it is with a dead faith that is alive in the body.